Affinity/St John form cannabis research partnership

ASX listed health and wellbeing company, Affinity Energy and Health, has signed an agreement with St John of God Hospital in Subiaco, or “SJGHC”, to jointly carry out medical cannabis research and development work.

This comes just days after the company secured approval to establish a medicinal cannabis cultivation and manufacturing facility in Malta.

Under the two-year heads of agreement, Affinity and SJGHC will collaborate to identify and undertake research projects and the development of medicinal cannabis products.

SJGHC is a Western Australia private hospital with 578 beds and around 900 medical practitioners that provides a wide range of medical and specialty service.

Notably, it has a strong focus on research and medical excellence.

Affinity Executive Chairman Malcolm James said: “We are excited to have entered into this agreement with St John of God Health Care Inc, as it further underpins the commercialisation of our Australian medicinal cannabis strategy whilst taking the potential benefits straight to the most important stakeholder, the patient.”

Affinity also signed an MoU with The University of Sydney in August to support its medicinal cannabis research and development activities in Australia.

Under this agreement, The University of Sydney will undertake research programs utilising Affinity’s bank of Australian medicinal cannabis “cultivars” to develop products focused on strategic stress and pain reduction (and management) in commercial livestock and the pet animal sector.

The company’s application for a licence to cultivate and produce medical cannabis in Australia is currently being processed by the Australian Government.

Australia was the fourth country in the world to legalise medical cannabis and is expected to have initial demand for up to 8000kg of product, creating an industry worth more than $100m, according to The University of Sydney.